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Pitino Blog: Wrapping Up Iowa State Scrimmage
10/24/2019 8:55:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Good morning Gopher fans,
Now is a good time to give a little state of the union as the season is upon us. Obviously we are devastated by the news of Eric Curry tearing his ACL recently in practice. He has had a successful surgery and will begin the road to recovery immediately. I am so impressed by his positive attitude throughout this whole process. We all could learn a lot from Eric's positive attitude when adversity hits. He will still be an important member of this team this season. We certainly lost a lot with Eric out but injuries are an unfortunate part of the game. No excuses, no complaining. Everyone else will have to step up.
Our schedule is extremely challenging so our guys will have to be ready right away. We recently played Iowa State in a scrimmage. It was a great opportunity for our guys to compete vs. someone else besides themselves. We learned a good amount about what we are good at and where we need to improve. We need to be a low turnover, high assist team. I think we have the ability to be very skilled and efficient. 20 turnovers and 22 fouls won't cut it. 19 for 23 from the foul line is terrific. I have decided to take our fans advice and started practicing free throws. It seems to be working! Thanks for your help Gopher fans!
38 percent from the field is not bad. 8 for 28 from the 3 point line is solid. Our guys are pretty good at not taking bad shots. We won the rebounding battle 51-40. Only had 4 steals which isn't great. Steals are great opportunities for easy baskets. We have to be more disruptive. 19 deflections isn't enough! Every good team has an identity. My NIT championship team could shoot it and move the ball. Our two recent NCAA tourney teams were tough, physical and great at getting fouled. It will be interesting to see what our identity is moving forward. The word our guys have chosen as a theme for this year is TOUGH. We need to be that mentally and physically every day. Everything will change when minutes are being distributed. The outside noise will start to hit our guys with questions, comments, and concerns. The good ones ignore the noise and stay the course. Below is an individual breakdown of how each guy played and where they can get better. Let the mind games begin!
Marcus Carr - 5 turnovers and 9 missed shots is no good. 17 points, 5 rebounds and 5 made free throws is productive. Marcus is really tough and fearless. Needs to work on being more efficient offensively.
Payton Willis - Took Payton a little while to get going offensively. Love the 5 rebounds. Don't love the 3 turnovers. Made some big shots down the stretch.
Gabe Kalscheur - Missed some open looks that I know he will make. Gabe is a lethal weapon from three. I have to get him great looks. Zero steals is no good. He needs to be a pest defensively.
Daniel Oturu - Loved his effort on defense. You can really tell Daniel is trying to take the next step. 13 rebounds is great. 4 turnovers and fouling out obviously isn't great.
Alihan Demir - 6 rebounds is good. Need Alihan to be more aggressive scoring the basketball. He needs to get off more than 3 attempts in a game. Loved that he didn't turn the ball over. Unfortunately fouled out as well.
Tre' Williams - Didn't seem to get into much of a rhythm. Has been a bit hampered by a shoulder injury. He will get there. Can be a great spark for us.
Bryan Greenlee - Love seeing 4 rebounds and a steal. Guards should be great rebounders because their guy normally doesn't go rebound. Starting to evolve as a really good defender.
Jarvis Omersa - Plays so hard and has incredible energy. 5 rebounds is great. Love his effort. Increased role this year.
Sam Freeman - Terrific rebounder. Goes after it with two hands. Still figuring out the system. Sam will get there.
Isaiah Ihnen - Still trying to figure out what position to play him at. Has been playing both the 3 and the 4. Needs to rebound more. Hit a big 3. Love how much he cares.
Michael Hurt - Mike was big off the bench. Made winning plays when we needed him to. Rebounded the ball well. Looked like a senior who understands how to win.
Hunt Conroy - DNP, coach's decision
Brady Rudrud - Missed the trip due to illness. Must have been a fun Friday night on campus. Just kidding! I think.
Congrats to Gopher football on their 7-0 start. Love watching them play. I don't know much about football but when I watch them I see a team that is extremely bought in, well coached and disciplined. Let's pack the house Saturday vs. Maryland!
Fun Wolves game last night in Brooklyn. Awesome to see Gopher alum Ryan Saunders get his first win. Karl Anthony Towns is a star. Wiggins made big plays down the stretch.
If you haven't bought your tickets yet for our annual Coaches vs. Cancer event please do! It's a fun night and a great opportunity to kick off the season. Most importantly, all the proceeds go to the fight against cancer.
It's back to work for the Gophers. We play 6 high major opponents in ten non-conference games as well as two early Big Ten games! We have to take huge strides the next few weeks. It's going to be fun!
Go Gophers,
Richard Pitino
Now is a good time to give a little state of the union as the season is upon us. Obviously we are devastated by the news of Eric Curry tearing his ACL recently in practice. He has had a successful surgery and will begin the road to recovery immediately. I am so impressed by his positive attitude throughout this whole process. We all could learn a lot from Eric's positive attitude when adversity hits. He will still be an important member of this team this season. We certainly lost a lot with Eric out but injuries are an unfortunate part of the game. No excuses, no complaining. Everyone else will have to step up.
Our schedule is extremely challenging so our guys will have to be ready right away. We recently played Iowa State in a scrimmage. It was a great opportunity for our guys to compete vs. someone else besides themselves. We learned a good amount about what we are good at and where we need to improve. We need to be a low turnover, high assist team. I think we have the ability to be very skilled and efficient. 20 turnovers and 22 fouls won't cut it. 19 for 23 from the foul line is terrific. I have decided to take our fans advice and started practicing free throws. It seems to be working! Thanks for your help Gopher fans!
38 percent from the field is not bad. 8 for 28 from the 3 point line is solid. Our guys are pretty good at not taking bad shots. We won the rebounding battle 51-40. Only had 4 steals which isn't great. Steals are great opportunities for easy baskets. We have to be more disruptive. 19 deflections isn't enough! Every good team has an identity. My NIT championship team could shoot it and move the ball. Our two recent NCAA tourney teams were tough, physical and great at getting fouled. It will be interesting to see what our identity is moving forward. The word our guys have chosen as a theme for this year is TOUGH. We need to be that mentally and physically every day. Everything will change when minutes are being distributed. The outside noise will start to hit our guys with questions, comments, and concerns. The good ones ignore the noise and stay the course. Below is an individual breakdown of how each guy played and where they can get better. Let the mind games begin!
Marcus Carr - 5 turnovers and 9 missed shots is no good. 17 points, 5 rebounds and 5 made free throws is productive. Marcus is really tough and fearless. Needs to work on being more efficient offensively.
Payton Willis - Took Payton a little while to get going offensively. Love the 5 rebounds. Don't love the 3 turnovers. Made some big shots down the stretch.
Gabe Kalscheur - Missed some open looks that I know he will make. Gabe is a lethal weapon from three. I have to get him great looks. Zero steals is no good. He needs to be a pest defensively.
Daniel Oturu - Loved his effort on defense. You can really tell Daniel is trying to take the next step. 13 rebounds is great. 4 turnovers and fouling out obviously isn't great.
Alihan Demir - 6 rebounds is good. Need Alihan to be more aggressive scoring the basketball. He needs to get off more than 3 attempts in a game. Loved that he didn't turn the ball over. Unfortunately fouled out as well.
Tre' Williams - Didn't seem to get into much of a rhythm. Has been a bit hampered by a shoulder injury. He will get there. Can be a great spark for us.
Bryan Greenlee - Love seeing 4 rebounds and a steal. Guards should be great rebounders because their guy normally doesn't go rebound. Starting to evolve as a really good defender.
Jarvis Omersa - Plays so hard and has incredible energy. 5 rebounds is great. Love his effort. Increased role this year.
Sam Freeman - Terrific rebounder. Goes after it with two hands. Still figuring out the system. Sam will get there.
Isaiah Ihnen - Still trying to figure out what position to play him at. Has been playing both the 3 and the 4. Needs to rebound more. Hit a big 3. Love how much he cares.
Michael Hurt - Mike was big off the bench. Made winning plays when we needed him to. Rebounded the ball well. Looked like a senior who understands how to win.
Hunt Conroy - DNP, coach's decision
Brady Rudrud - Missed the trip due to illness. Must have been a fun Friday night on campus. Just kidding! I think.
Congrats to Gopher football on their 7-0 start. Love watching them play. I don't know much about football but when I watch them I see a team that is extremely bought in, well coached and disciplined. Let's pack the house Saturday vs. Maryland!
Fun Wolves game last night in Brooklyn. Awesome to see Gopher alum Ryan Saunders get his first win. Karl Anthony Towns is a star. Wiggins made big plays down the stretch.
If you haven't bought your tickets yet for our annual Coaches vs. Cancer event please do! It's a fun night and a great opportunity to kick off the season. Most importantly, all the proceeds go to the fight against cancer.
It's back to work for the Gophers. We play 6 high major opponents in ten non-conference games as well as two early Big Ten games! We have to take huge strides the next few weeks. It's going to be fun!
Go Gophers,
Richard Pitino
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